Canada airline WestJet cancels more than 400 flights after a surprise strike by mechanics union

Canada’s second largest airline, WestJet, has canceled more than 400 flights affecting almost 50,000 passengers after the union of maintenance workers announced it has gone on strike. The surprise strike affecting international and domestic flights is happening during the Canada Day long weekend. WestJet said it was “extremely outraged." The strike came after the federal government issued a ministerial order for binding arbitration on Thursday. That followed two weeks of turbulent discussions with the union on a new deal.